Flushing attachment for water-closets



P. J. MADDEN. FLUSHING ATTACHMENT FOR WATER CLOSETS.

2 Sheets-Sheet 1.

(No Model.)

Patented Oct. 13,1896

(No Model.) 7

P. J. MADDEN.

2 Sheets-Sheet FLUSHING ATTACHMENT FOR WATER CLOSETS. No. 569,341. Patented Oct. 13, 1896;

Wi /22mm Z52 wemia 1 WW fin dm UNITED STATES PATENT OEEIcE.

PATRICK J. MADDEN, OF ROCHESTER, NEIV YORK.

,FLUSHING ATTACHMENT FOR WATER-CLOSETS.

SPECIFICATION forming partof Letters Patent No. 569,341, dated October 13, 1896.

Application filed June 23, 1890. Serial No. 356,410. (No model.)

To all whom it may concern:

Beit known that I, PATRICK J. MADDEN, of Rochester, in the county of Monroe and State of New York, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in W'ater- Closets, of which the following is a specification, reference being had tothe accompanying drawings, which are made a part hereof, and in which Figure 1 is a sectional elevation of a watercloset embodying the invention. Fig. 2 is a section of a portion of the bowl on a larger scale, the cutting plane beingindicated by the line as :r, Fig. 1. Fig. 3 is a sectional elevation of the valve mechanism and the adjacent parts on a larger scale, the section being taken in a vertical plane cutting the water-supply pipes. Fi g. 4 is a vertical section of the flushing-tank. Fig. 5 is a perspective view of the bracket to which the seat-rail is attached. Fig. 6 is a fragmentary view showing in section the bracket shown in Fig. 5, the seatrail attached thereto, and a portion of the bowl. Fig. 7 is a plan view of said bracket and a horizontal section of the water-pipe to which it is secured.

The present invent-ion relates more particularly to that class of watenclosets in which water is first admitted to an air-tight flushing-tank (by which is meant a tank of such construction that air is compressed in it by the water that enters it) and afterward discharged therefrom into the bowl, but I desire to have it understood that some features of said invention are applicable to closets in which the flushing tank is not airtight. Hence I reserve to myself the exclusive right to use the several novel combinations in which my invention consists as the same are severally set forth in the claims hereinafter.

A indicates the bowl, and B the seat, the latter in its normal position standing somewhat elevated, as shown in Fig. 1. The bowl is constructed with two curved water-passages a Z), rising to a height equal to the level at which the water stands in the bowl, one communicating with the interior of the bowl, as shown at c, and the other with the discharge, as shown at (Z. It is also constructed with aside jet-passage f, (indicated by dotted lines in Fig. 1,) the upper end communicating with the inlet-pipe of the bowl, as shown at g, and the lower end opening into the bottom of passage a, as shown at h. TVhen the water enters the bowl,a portion passes through the usual side passage 15 under the rim and discharges through the perforations i t, leading therefrom into the bowl, and a portion passes down the jet-tube f, and by its force drives the water in the bowl up through passage Ct and causes it to discharge through passage b. Its efiect is to force the Water out of the bowl and drive it over into the outlet.-

B is the flushing-tank, located above the bowl, and O is a pipe connected therewith and having a lateral branch Cleading to the bowl. The upper end of pipe 0 is screwed into the bottom of the tank and projects upward some distance therefrom, as shown at 7c, Fig. 4, and is provided with an orifice Z close to the bottom of the tank, the object of which will be presently described.

D is a valve in the pipe 0, which shuts up against a seat m to cut off the supply to the tank. It is attached to a stem n and is pressed up to close the valve by a spring 0.

E is a valve in the branch pipe 0', which shuts back against a seatj to cut off the supply of water from the tank to the bowl. It is attached to a valve-stem p and is pressed forward to open the valve by a stiff spring g. F is a rocker consisting of a segment pivoted at '7' so as to swing forward and back, one side resting against stem 1) and the other against stem or. Thestem p has a projection 19, which rests inside the bowl and is provided with a friction-roller p at its end. The seat B has a bearing .9 on its under side, which rests against this roller.

In the normal position of the parts and when no weight rests upon the seat the spring 0 closes the valve D and shuts off the supply of water to the tank. The spring holds the valve E normally unseated and also holds the seat normallyina partially-elevated position. It is desirable to avoid the use of springhinges in closets of the class to which the present invention belongs not only because they are expensive, but because where they are used the operativeness of the entire device depends upon their being kept in perfect working order, and experience shows that they are frequently loosened or broken by the severe strains to which they are subjected 'the bowl.

stem rests and into the bowl.

through accident or carelessness. It is desirable, therefore, to have the valve mechanism complete in itself and of such a nature that' it will do its duty whether the seat connection is disabled or not. In the construction shown in my former patent, No. 37%,310, dated December 6, 1887, if the hinges are injured so that they permit the seat to fall its weight will unseat the valve in the water-supply pipe and may or may not seat the valve which controls the flow of Water into the bowl, and this would be decidedly objectionable; but by providing a spring which positively controls the valve E, regardless of the condition of the seat-hinges, the valve in the supplypipe cannot be accidentally unseated.

lVhen weight is applied to the seat, the valve-stem p is forced back, closing the valve Eagainst valve-seatj and cutting off the supply to the bowl. At the same time valve D is opened, allowing water to flow through pipe 0 into the tank. The closing of one valve and the opening of the other are made reciprocal by the rocker F, which rests between the two valve-stems. hen the weight is removed from the seat again, valve D closes and valve E opens, and the water in the tank is forced down through pipe 0' into the bowl. The pipe G has a port or passage it, which communicates with the jet-passage g and similar ports, which communicate with the side passage 1. When the valve E is opened, these passages are uncovered,and when closed they are cut off.

The seat j is formed upon the end of a tube G, which is located within and is independ ent of the pipe 0, the two being provided with engaging threads which permit the adj ustment of the tube within the pipe and relatively to the valve E. This is very important in an apparatus of the character in question, in which the force with which the water is discharged from the tank depends upon the extent to which the water upon entering the tank compresses the air therein, and this in turn depends upon the pressure of the water in the service-pipe. As the pressure in the service-pipe d-ilfers and as it is necessary in order to get the best results that the water be admitted to the bowl at or near a certain velocity the independent adjustable seat for the valve E is an important feature. For instance, if the pressure is one hundred pounds the tube is adjusted outward to leave less space between the valve and seat. If it is only twenty-five pounds, it is adjusted inward to give greater space. If there is too much force, the stream-overrides and splashes regulated exactly to the pressure. A packing-cup a is attached to valve-stem p in advance of the valve E, in order to prevent the water from flowing around the valve-stem and out through the hole in which the valve- It forces the water to pass through the lateral discharges into the bowl, as before described. On the By this means the flow can be inner side the packing-cup rests against a solid shoulder U of the valve-stem. On the outer side a loose washer to is held against it by a packing-ring a, fitted into a groove of the valve-stem. WVhen the valve-stem is fully thrown out, this packing-rm g rest-s against the facing of the pipe 0 that fits the bowl, thus doubly packing the valve-stem. The valve E is a disk valve and is preferably of half-globular form, as shown, and its base rests within a flanged shoulder of the valve-stem, said flanged shoulder holding it in place and preventing it from being crushed out under great pressure.

The closet-seat B is hinged to the seat-rail e in the usual way. Vhen the pipe 0 is brought in close contact with the bowl, as is sometimes the case, I employ a bracket I-I, Figs. 5, 6, and 7, for sustaining the rear edge of the rail. This bracket may be attached to the water-supply pipe in any suitable manner, but preferably by two perforated lugs 11, formed on it, and a screw passing through said lugs and a similar lug C on the pipe, as shown in Fig. 7. The bracket is also provided with lugs a which engage shoulders on the bowl resulting from sockets 11 It also has backwardly-projecting lugs 0 0 to which the rear edge of the rail is secured by bolts d (P. It also has set-screws f f by which the bracket is tightened to the bowl and adjusted in place, said screws screwing against the outside of the bowl.

Even during proper and careful use (to say nothing of careless and rough use, accidents, &c.) the seat is subjected to severe strains, and where it is attached directly to a bowl of earthenware the ware is frequently cracked and broken. It is for this reason that it is sometimes desirable to attach it to the watersupply pipe.

It is a well-known fact that when water and air are confined together under pressure in a tank the water absorbs more or less of the air, and this is true of flushing attachments of the character shown and. described. It therefore follows that the escaping water will carry off with it just so much of the air as it has absorbed, so that when sufficient water has been discharged to reduce the pressure within the tank to atmospheric, the volume of air within the tank will be less than when the water was admitted, or, in other words, the tank will contain more or less water, and this water can escape only so fast as ICO air can pass upward through the pipe 0 and vide an auxiliary outlet of very much less capacity than the main outlet through which the water below the main outlet may drain out slowly. The main outlet is located at such distance above the bottom of the tank that in escaping the level of the water can reach it without requiring the admission of air to the tank. As shown in the drawings, the pipe 0 is provided with an extension 70, that projects upward into the tank for the proper distance, and the open end of this extension constitutes the main outlet, and the auxiliary outlet consists of an opening Z, formed in the side of this extension near the bottom of the tank. \Vith this arrangement the water will discharge rapidly until it reaches the level of the upper end of this extension, and after it reaches this level the remairliing water will escape through the opening I am aware that it has been proposed to use in combination an elevated tank, a pipe extending from the tank to the bowl, said pipe being without a valve or other device for cutting off communication between the tank and bowl, but having an extension projecting upward into the tank and terminating near the top thereof, said extension having a lateral opening near the bottom of the tank, a water-supply pipe communicating with the tank, and a valve in said pipe. This arrangement is such that as fast as water is admitted to the tank a portion of it will flow out through the lateral opening in the extension of the pipe leading to the bowl and through said pipe to the bowl, and should the valve in the supply-pipe be kept open long enough the water in the tank will reach the level of the upper end ,of the extension, after which the water will escape from the tank as fast as it enters. After the supply is cut off the water remaining in the tank escapes through the lateral opening of the upward extension of the bowl pipe and through said pipe into the bowl. This apparatus is merely for providing an after fill and in no sense can it be considered an air-tight tank within the meaning of that term as used in this specification. It is not air-tight. It is constantly in open communication with the bowl.

The term air-tight tank as used in this specification means a flushing-tank of such construction that it confines a body of air that is compressed when water is introduced into the tank under pressure.

What I claim as new, and desire to secure by Letters Patent, is

1. In a water-closet,the combination with an air-tight tank and a bowl, of a water-supply pipe, a valve arranged therein, a spring holding said valve normally seated, a pipe leading to the tank, a pipe leading to the bowl, a valve-seat arranged therein and adjustable independently thereof, a valve E adapted to close upon said seat, means for transmitting movement from the valve E to the valve first aforesaid, and a stem fixed to the valve E and projecting from the pipe in position to be engaged and operated, substantially as set forth.

2. In a water-closet,the combination with an air-tight tank and abowl, of a water-supply pipe, a valve arranged therein, a spring holding said valve normally seated, a pipe leading to the tank, a pipe leading to the bowl, a valve E and valve seat arranged therein, said valve and seat being relatively adjustable so that the closed position of the valve may be varied, a stem fixed to the valve and projecting from the pipe and into the bowl, a seat having a projection adapted to engage said stem, means for transmitting movement from the valve E to the valve first aforesaid, and a spring holding the valve E normally unseated, said spring being of sufficient strength to hold the seat partly elevated, substantially as set forth.

3. In a water-closet,the combination with an air-tight tank and a bowl, of a water-supply pipe, a valve and valve-seat arranged therein, a spring holding said valve normally seated, a pipe leading to the tank, a pipe leading to the bowl, a valve E and valve seat arranged therein, said valve-seat being adjustable, a stem fixed to the valve and projecting from the pipe and into the bowl, a seat having a projection adapted to engage said stem, means for transmitting movement from the valve E to the valve first aforesaid, and a spring holding the Valve E normally unseated, said spring being of sufficient strength to hold the seat partly elevated, substantially as set forth.

4. In a water-closet, the combination witha tank and a bowl, of a Water-supply pipe, a valve and valve-seat arranged therein, a spring holding said valve normally seated, a pipe leading to the tank, a pipe 0 leading to the bowl, a valve E arranged therein and having a stem projecting from the pipe in position to be operated upon, means for transmitting movement from the valve E to the valve first aforesaid, and the adjustable tube G arranged in the pipe 0 and having a seat j for the valve E, substantially as set forth.

5. In a water-closet, the combination with the bowl and a water-supply pipe, of a seat adapted to rest upon the bowl, a rail to which said seat is hinged; a bracket to which said rail is secured, said bracket having lugs a engaging the bowl, and means for securing the bracket to the water-supply pipe, substantially as set forth.

6. In a water-closet the combination with the bowl, of a flushing-tank having a main out-let and an auxiliary outlet located below the main outlet, a pipe for conveying water from said outlets to the bowl, a valve in said pipe and means for seating said valve while the tank is being filled, substantially as set forth.

'7. In a watercloset, the combination with the bowl, of an airtight flushing tank having a main outlet located above the bottom thereof and an auxiliary outlet located below the main outlet, a pipe for conveying water'from said outlets to the bowl, a Valve in said pipe and means for seating said Valve while the tank is being filled, substantially as set forth.

8. In a water-closet, the Combination with the bowl, of an air-tight tank having a main outlet and an auxiliary outlet located below the main outlet, pipes forsupplying the tank with water and for conveying water therefrom to the bowl; Valves in said pipes, and means for reciprocally operating said Valves, seating one and unseating the other, substantially as set forth.

9. In a water-closet, the combination with the bowl, of an airtight tank and a discharge-pipe extending through and terminating some distance above the bottom of the tank, and having a lateral opening between its upper end and the bottom of the tank, and means for olosing said pipe while the tank is being filled, substantially as set forth,

In witness whereof I have hereunto signed my name in the presence of two subscribing witnesses.

PATRICK J. MADDEN.

\Vitnesses:

R. F. OSGOOD, P. B. HULETT. 

